Oral History - all
Birth Date: October 22, 1926
Deceased Date: January 5, 2022
Dusti Dryer was just one year old when she was dubbed the world’s youngest musician. A photograph of her playing the harmonica, or rather holding it, was featured in a magazine and launched her career as a musician. Dusti took a liking to the drums and formed many small groups during her career,... more
Buford Jones has thoroughly enjoyed his career as a live sound mixer and FOH engineer for over 50 years. He toured in excess of 47 years with artists such as Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Eric Clapton, ZZ Top and Linda Ronstadt, just to name five. Buford pioneered mixing in stereo (in the early 1970s)... more
Crystal Taliefero is primarily a percussionist, yet she plays many other instruments including the bass and several wind instruments. In 1986, she began her long association with LP, her first endorsement, and since that time has also promoted Sabian Cymbals and ProMark Drum Sticks. While touring... more
Fred Vail was making announcements on a local radio station in Sacramento, California when he was just 12 years old. While in high school, he led the committee that brought bands to the school dances. One such band, The Beach Boys, had just recorded a few songs that were climbing up the charts but... more
Ricky Peterson is a lifelong Minnesotan musician whose family is deeply rooted in a characteristically “Minneapolis” sound. Ricky is best known for his 20 year association with saxophone legend David Sanborn, and for having produced, written and played keyboards for Prince. Peterson has also... more
Max Jones is the official greeter at Bill Jones Music in Knoxville. He does his best to meet each person as they enter the store and won’t mind if the customers take a moment to rub his belly. The founders of the store, Bill and Marjorie Jones, adopted Max when he was just 3 weeks old and he grew... more
Marjorie Jones and her husband opened the Bill Jones Music store in Knoxville, Tennessee back in 1973. She joined Bill full-time in 1989 after raising their children, and in 2011, Marjorie became the manager of their music lessons. Over the years, she has developed deep relationships with their... more
Bruce Bartlett is the founder of Bartlett Audio and has designed an impressive list of microphones over his long career. He worked for Shure and Crown International, where he designed and engineered several key products including the boom headset microphone, used by artists such as Garth Brooks,... more
Birth Date: April 7, 1942
Deceased Date: March 18, 2020
Tom Pick was the prominent studio engineer who was behind the glass inside RCA Studio B, working alongside producer Chet Atkins when hundreds of hit songs were recorded. During his NAMM interview, Tom outlined the equipment in the studio as well as some of the artists he was proud to work with over... more
Joseph Fox knew his great grandmother, Sarah, who along with her husband Otto, formed Fox Music House in South Carolina back in 1928. She was a great inspiration to Joseph who grew up knowing nothing else but the music business. Working closely with his father, Charles, Joseph watched and learned... more
Charles Fox learned so much from his grandparents who established the family business, Fox Music House, in 1928. His father, Maurice, expanded the company to several locations and brought in a wide range of instruments and pro-audio gear. Charles then further expanded the business and ushered in... more
Victor Quarterman began taking drum lessons as a kid at Leonard’s School of Music, which was established by the father of his longtime friend and mentor, Danny Leonard. Danny introduced Victor to music retail, which aside from gigging, has been his lifelong passion. While working for Fox Music... more
Birth Date: February 15, 1917
Deceased Date: March 9, 1999
Lowell Samuel was the quintessential music man! He devoted his life to creating school band programs in the small towns of Illinois before and after World War II. After serving as a band director, he opened Samuel Music in 1946, which allowed him to continue to support both students and band... more
Birth Date: September 24, 1916
Deceased Date: October 31, 1998
This audio only interview was conducted for a radio program by Dan Del Fiorentino and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Johnny Catron formed his first band in Boston back in 1939, but gained fame as a bandleader and songwriter when he reformed his band following World War II in Southern ... more
Steve Araujo grew up in Southern California playing guitar and bass in school and in local bands. Becoming a professional bassist, Steve toured and taught music for many years. Seeing a need to create a platform online for bass players to gather, he developed the website The Bass Hang. The site... more
David McLaren worked closely with his father, John McLaren Sr., at BBE Sound in Southern California, which purchased G&L Guitars. David fell in love with the G&L story and products, and today serves as President & CEO. His main focus is to continue the legacy of the two founders, George... more
John McLaren Jr. grew up in the music business as his father, John McLaren Sr., served as a strong leader for CBS Musical Instruments, which owned such brands as Steinway pianos and Fender guitars. His father was also the Senior Vice President for Yamaha Corporation. John Sr.'s involvement in... more
Rusty Richards would like to point out the distinction between Singing Cowboys and Cowboys that sing. He is very much a cowboy, having roped, rode in the rodeo and having worked as a ranch hand most of his life. He also is a singer, having crooned with the famous Sons of The Pioneers and other... more
DJ Grandmaster Flash combined his love of music with his passion for electronics to become one of the pioneers of Hip Hop music. His innovative style of mixing records and blending beats provided the foundation for a generation of DJs and MCs, as well as set the stage of EDM and other forms of... more
Phil Ealy is an award-winning lighting designer who established West Coast Concert Lighting in the late 70’s. Having designed the lighting rigs for several large rock tours, Phil became known for his attention to every detail with focus on smooth eloquent color transitions and flash and bang... more